Uncategorized Category | Page 457 of 504 | The Ring Finders

Wow! what a find today. I not only found the ring for Todd S. but got a steak dinner out of the deal. I was called by a fellow Ring Finder, Tom Townsend, who originally got the call but because of his work schedule could not make the search. I called Kimm, Todd’s sister-in-law, around 5PM and after talking to her made arrangements to go down to South Haven, MI at 9AM the next morning. The weather at the moment was warm and the big lake was very calm so I decided to make the 50 mile trip right away that evening. I called my detecting partner, Dave B., and we got our gear together and got down to South Haven about 6:30PM giving us a good 2 hours to hunt before sunset.

We met Kimm and Todd’s wife Jennifer and their other sister Melissa and the kids at the lake and they directed us to the spot and there in the lake was Todd who had goggles and a snorkel and had been in the water for over 5 hours looking for his ring. Dave and I began our search using a grid method and in about 20 minutes I got a good signal on my CZ21, I scooped up the sand and there it was a beautiful platinum ring with 7 diamonds. Todd was about 3 feet from me and I raised my hand with the ring and got a big bear hug from him. It was a very emotional moment from a giant of a man. After some happy faces and pictures taken, even by tourist, we were invited to dinner at their vacation home down the street.

After everyone went back to the house Dave and I searched the water for a little while as the Lake was calm and the weather was great. We changed into our dry clothes and went to Todd’s vacation home and met the rest of the family. This was an Italian family from Pingree Grove, IL and when they get together it is a meal that was meant for a king. We had Filet Mignon and all the trimmings. Kimm had grown most of the salad items from her 4000 square foot garden. With the meal and great conversation, that lasted late into the evening, we wrapped up a great search event and headed back to Grand Rapids. Thank you Tom T. for the referral.

        Kara called at about 7pm saying that she lost two rings at Pacific Beach, two days ago. I told her I was on my way and also explained that it’s entirely possible that someone else could have already found them, as that beach is heavily hunted. I arrived a bit after sunset and was shown the search area. Dry sand and it was marked where they thought the rings fell. A common story about the rings having been removed and wrapped up in a shirt for safekeeping. Later,  the shirt went back on and the rings went into the sand. After only ten minutes or so, and a few junk targets, I hit the first ring….a screaming silver sound.  A foot away, I get the sketchy, small white gold sound. The E-trac, Stealth 720i, and the Vibraprobe get the job done again along with some great work by Kara to get me near the spot! Nice to meet you and thank you for the reward.

Another long distance return. Matt had lost his platinum wedding ring in the shallow surf. Not being able to find it, he flew home to Seattle. I found it a few days later and was able to get in touch with him. He was going to be back in San Diego soon so I just held onto it until he flew down again. A pleasure to meet you Matt and thank you for the reward.

Ken searched the internet for help in finding his wedding ring, which was lost as he was swimming in approx. 6 feet of water in a northern Minnesota lake. He came across the ring finders and my blog. I talked with Ken and told him that it was a bad time for me as my « real job » is so busy right now and he lost his ring about 4 hours from me. I contacted Scott Juusola who is another ring finder in my area and he was also too busy to head up that way. He told me of a diving buddy of his who also metal detects and lives up north. So, I gave the information to Ken and as you see by the PIC – All is well again!!! Thanks to the ring finders web service, another happy couple celebrating the return of their lost valuable.

I was doing some metal detecting for fun in a local lake swimming area last week when I found a big gold ring.  The ring said Oxygen Service on it and there were initials and a date inscribed inside the band.  I was pretty sure that I’d be able to find the owner, but I had no idea that this ring had such a tumultuous past.

I Googled ‘Oxygen Service’ to see what it meant and found that it was a local company that services the welding business.  That’s when I knew that the ring must have been someone’s service ring for working for the company.  So I called up the company, explained the situation and asked if there was anyone there with the same  initials that  engraved on the ring.  The person immediately knew who it was and put me right through to him.  That’s when I learned about how the owner lost the ring.

Steve’s home was burglarized some time in 2006 and several items were taken, including Steve’s gold company service ring.  Steve had long given up on ever getting the ring back because after the burglars were apprehended, they said that they sold the ring and there was no trace as to who had bought it.   But somehow, after 8 years, I found the ring in a roped off swimming area a few miles from Steve’s home.  We will never know how the ring ended up in 4 feet of water, but Steve and I were thrilled to see it back where it belongs.  On Steve’s finger!

Emma Shaw & friends found themselves playing volley ball in one of the many open areas in the sand dunes of Studland Beach. The beach was extensively used in WW2 as a training ground for the forthcoming D-Day landings and a practice bombing range too. Some craters were so large they still exist today as tennis court size ‘bowls’ and it was in one of these bowls Emma & friends found themselves playing.
During the game she accidentally ripped her chain and pendants from around her neck sending them flying in all directions. The chain and two pendants were found immediately but her third disappeared. It was her precious VW Camper she had bought as a teenager with the wish to one day buy a real one of her own.
The first attempt lasted 2 hours but we was unsuccessful. Though the sand looked clean the amount of bomb shrapnel and lead underneath was phenomenal and the scoop was used on nearly every single sweep.
The second attempt lasted another hour and a half- this time a new location but equally the same amount of junk. I was beginning to lose hope when suddenly from the bottom of the scoop, expecting more shrapnel, lay a cute little silver

VW. My patience and perseverance were tested on this recovery as I could not afford to ignore any signal large of small. Emma has promised a donation to the Margaret Green Animal Rescue Centre shortly.
Emma unfortunately had a sad week losing her pendant and other things and Im very pleased to have made her a little happier recovering something so small and yet so massively important to her.